Why All Pakistani Hospitals Need 24/7 Dental Surgery Care

Writer: Exponect.com Team

A Letter to The Government of Pakistan To Establish 24 Hours Dental Emergency Units in All Hospitals.

To:

The Prime Minister of Pakistan

The President of Pakistan

Federal & Provincial Health Ministers

By a Citizen & Heart Patient of Pakistan

 

When a cardiac patient suffers a heart attack, the doors of hospital emergency wards are open immediately or such patients. But what happens when that dental patient experiences severe bleeding from a Tooth or wisdom tooth in the middle of the night?

In Lahore, I tried my best to search a hospital for my dental issue with severe bleeding but management and doctors of many hospital wards told me that there is no dental doctor in the hospital and dental surgery department is closed.

This is my true story from a few nights ago.

 

The Night the Doors of Dental hospitals or Wards Shut at Night in Pakistani Hospitals

I am a heart patient, I take blood-thinning medications daily as prescribed by my cardiologist. A few nights ago, I felt severe pain and observe heavy bleeding from my wisdom tooth. For me, it is a life-threatening medical emergency.

I was Terrified I moved from one major public hospital to another near and far away from my home like

 

Sheikh Zayed Hospital

Mayo Hospital

Services Hospital

Said Mitha Hospital

Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC)

At every single emergency department, I was met with the same cold, insensitive response:

"There is no emergency dentist available at night. Come back in the morning."

Desperate, I rushed to the Punjab Dental Hospital, but it was closed completely after 5pm. I could not afford private medical treatment because of financial issues and private treatment is expensive.

I spent the rest of the night under the open sky outside Nawaz Sharif Teaching Hospital (Yakki Gate, Lahore).

 

Dental X-Ray Print Issue

At 8 a.m., I entered the Punjab Dental Hospital. Doctor advised for dental X-ray and I paid Rs. 12 at the window and I was sent in the room for the X-ray.

The X-ray was done but I was shocked that the department lacked basic printing paper, film, or digital diagnostic integration. Instead of a physical report, the technician simply pointed to a computer screen and said:

"Take a picture of the screen with your mobile phone."

Suppose If a patient has no mobile phone then how he or she can take picture from computer screen.

So, I had to visit on PIC Dental Department. When I reached there and dr. asked me for X-ray report and I showed him image in my phone. He smiled and told me to get another dental X-ray and come back to him.

 

The Crisis of Emergency Dental Care in Pakistani Hospitals

 

One of the fundamental problems with Pakistan's healthcare system is that there is no dedicated emergency department for dental and oral health care in most public hospitals. As a result, patients suffering from serious dental emergencies often have nowhere to go, especially during the night.

 

Those who can afford it seek immediate treatment at expensive private hospitals and dental clinics, but what about the poor? They are left without options, forced to endure severe pain, uncontrolled bleeding, or life-threatening complications until morning.

 

The Government of Pakistan must take this issue seriously and urgently improve the performance of public hospitals, particularly their emergency dental and oral surgery departments. Like other emergency medical services, dental emergency departments should remain open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so that every citizen has access to timely treatment regardless of their financial situation.

 

All Pakistani hospitals have emergency departments pertaining to general surgeons, orthopedic surgeons, and cardiologists, cardiac surgeons but dental surgery services are typically available in the morning hours from 9 a.m. to 2 pm at afternoon.

This limited availability represents a serious gap in Pakistan's healthcare system because many oral and serious dental conditions require immediate medical attention. Delaying treatment until the next morning can lead to severe complications and, in some cases, may even put a patient's life at risk.

 

Global Standards and Situation of Pakistan

In the foreign countries like USA, UK, etc., all hospitals have dental emergencies which deal with oral bleeding and facial trauma and, and other acute dental conditions that require immediate treatment at night.

Pakistan: A System That Leaves Patients Without Dental Treatment

 

Pakistan's public healthcare system offers free treatment but often fails to provide emergency dental services during the night in various government hospitals.

 

 

 Patients with severe dental bleeding are frequently left untreated because no emergency dentist or dental surgeon is available at night.

 

Most public hospitals do not have dental and maxillofacial surgery specialists available during the night shift. As a result, many patients suffering from serious dental or oral emergencies and they are unable to receive treatment on right time. They are forced to endure severe pain, continuous bleeding, and other serious complications that can sometimes become life-threatening.

The situation becomes even more dangerous when the patient has an existing medical condition, especially heart disease, and is also experiencing uncontrolled dental bleeding. I personally experienced this situation. After my wisdom tooth erupted, my gum suddenly started bleeding heavily. Despite visiting multiple hospitals in Lahore, I could not find a single facility that was prepared to provide immediate dental emergency treatment.

 

In most places, I was only given a pain-relief injection only. In some hospitals, I was told, "There is no dental doctor available at night; come back in the morning in OPD." Others medical staff suggested me that I should spend money and seek treatment from a private hospital.

This is not just a healthcare system failure; it is also a serious violation of medical ethics. Every patient urgent medical treatment regardless of financial status or the time of day. Leaving a patient bleeding from tooth without proper treatment or care reflects a dangerous decline in compassion and responsibility within the healthcare system in Pakistani hospitals. It is a failure of health ministry in Pakistan that fails to provide basic health facilitates to the masses.

 

The Lesson for the Pakistan Government:

 

Pakistan can significantly improve patient safety by adopting internationally accepted standards for emergency dental care. Every major public hospital should establish 24/7 emergency dental surgery departments that maintain international standards and ensure that all patients receive treatment during dental emergencies, regardless of their financial circumstances.

 

The Government of Pakistan should take a rigorous action plan to reform the healthcare system and align it with global best practices. A good government is one that works for the welfare and well-being of its people.